Roger Cullman
Bonfire Brings Jewish Mysticism To Life
On Tuesday night I joined JUMP, BAC and hundreds of Toronto's Jewish community in a huge bonfire at Earl Bale's Park in the city's north end to celebrate Lag BaOmer, the days leading up to the Jewish holiday of Shavuot.
It is customary on this holiday to light bonfires to symbolize the spiritual light brought into the world that was impacted through the teachings of Shimon bar Yochai, the greatest teacher of Torah in his generation.
The holiday stems from the teachings of Kaballah, or Jewish mysticism, recently made popular by Madonna.
When I arrived at the park I saw lots of families having a good time with their young kids.
There was a clown making balloon animals and a few children wondering about sugared up with cotton candy.
There were plenty of local Hasidim present, with their wide-brimmed hats, long beards and tallith dangling below their belts. It was good to see many bring their four-legged friends with them too.
Kids of all ages took delight in throwing bits of wood onto the growing bonfire.
It wasn't until after dark that the bonfire really took hold and people brought out marshmallows to roast. One kid had a particularly Canadian, inventive method of roasting his marshmallows.
A couple of drummers, dressed all in white, handed out 20 djembe drums to the crowd and let them in an impromptu drum circle around the fire. They even took out a couple of shofars and played along with the beat.
One of the local rabbis tried to gain the crowd's attention to explain the night's significance, but it largely fell on deaf ears, as everyone was too busy enjoying the crackling of the fire, the drums, their friends and family.
By the end of the night, the atmosphere reminded me of a PG-rated version of some of the pit parties I went to back in my high school days, where we'd gather around a bonfire in a nearby ravine.
Maybe it was the sound of the drums, the crackling of the fire or the overall sense of community, but I began to feel a sense of connectedness and warmth with my fellow Jews on this otherwise chilly spring evening.
Photos © Roger Cullman.
Bonfire Brings Jewish Mysticism To Life
On Tuesday night I joined JUMP, BAC and hundreds of Toronto's Jewish community in a huge bonfire at Earl Bale's Park in the city's north end to celebrate Lag BaOmer, the days leading up to the Jewish holiday of Shavuot.
It is customary on this holiday to light bonfires to symbolize the spiritual light brought into the world that was impacted through the teachings of Shimon bar Yochai, the greatest teacher of Torah in his generation.
The holiday stems from the teachings of Kaballah, or Jewish mysticism, recently made popular by Madonna.
When I arrived at the park I saw lots of families having a good time with their young kids.
There was a clown making balloon animals and a few children wondering about sugared up with cotton candy.
There were plenty of local Hasidim present, with their wide-brimmed hats, long beards and tallith dangling below their belts. It was good to see many bring their four-legged friends with them too.
Kids of all ages took delight in throwing bits of wood onto the growing bonfire.
It wasn't until after dark that the bonfire really took hold and people brought out marshmallows to roast. One kid had a particularly Canadian, inventive method of roasting his marshmallows.
A couple of drummers, dressed all in white, handed out 20 djembe drums to the crowd and let them in an impromptu drum circle around the fire. They even took out a couple of shofars and played along with the beat.
One of the local rabbis tried to gain the crowd's attention to explain the night's significance, but it largely fell on deaf ears, as everyone was too busy enjoying the crackling of the fire, the drums, their friends and family.
By the end of the night, the atmosphere reminded me of a PG-rated version of some of the pit parties I went to back in my high school days, where we'd gather around a bonfire in a nearby ravine.
Maybe it was the sound of the drums, the crackling of the fire or the overall sense of community, but I began to feel a sense of connectedness and warmth with my fellow Jews on this otherwise chilly spring evening.
Photos © Roger Cullman.